Sweet Advances
by valeforwings
Summary: "Haru again." Makoto replied, picking up his coffee and swirling the ice around before taking a sip. "If I didn't know any better and with y'know, being your boyfriend, then I'd say that someone has a crush." A story of a blossoming relationship between a young florist, his delivery boy boyfriend, and the cute blue-eyed baker across the street. (eventual Marinka)
1. Chapter 1

_Fandom: Free! Iwatobi Swim Club_

_Pairing: established Makoto/Rin & Seijuurou/Gou, eventual Makoto/Rin/Haruka & Rei/Nagisa_

_Summary: "Haru again." Makoto replied, picking up his coffee and swirling the ice around before taking a sip. "If I didn't know any better and with y'know, being your boyfriend, then I'd say that someone has a crush." A story of a blossoming relationship between a young florist, his delivery boy boyfriend, and the cute blue-eyed baker across the street._

_Disclaimer: I don't own this series or these characters!_

_Author's note at the end!_

* * *

**Part one**

There was a strip of shops not far off from the town of Iwatobi that would generate a large amount of foot traffic and business. From small family owned shops, small restaurants and cafes, there was always something to do and see, to spend a day out regardless of rain or shine thanks to the overhead aunnings that would provide a good amount of shade and a cover for when the weather got on the wet side. A park was even down the way, close to the largest restaurant at the end of the line of shops, a family-themed restaurant, so that once people had finished their meal after a outing of shopping, they would typically all go there and relax and if they had children, watch them play and be happy. It was an ideal perfect spot if anyone needed a day to themselves or with friends or family, to let the worries of school or work slip away in the comforting retail atmosphere.

A small flower shop was nestled in the middle of everything, known for their excellent service and wide selection in such a small town. It was run by a young man, the blue haired and violet eyed owner named Rei Ryugazaki who loved nothing more than all things beautiful and wanted to share his arrangements and style with the town and someday, hopefully branch out. He had a close friend whom he befriended in his first year of university, and blossomed to be his co-worker and apprentice so to say. Makoto Tachibana, who learned well from Rei's teachings over the course of their friendship and lessons about the art of flower arrangements, and supported his friend and stuck by his side ever since their meeting in the literature club.

_"A flower shop?" Makoto had asked, tilting his head to the side. Rei's heart sank upon seeing Makoto's expression, but sighed in relief once he saw the older brunette smile. "That's a great idea, Rei!"_

Rei had his dream set from his high school years and it only increased when he decided to fulfill his dream, taking every business, management, and flower arrangement class he could and when he asked Makoto if he would like to help and work for him once the day had come, Makoto found himself taking a few arrangement classes himself. Thanks to his parents and his closest friends' support, Rei had gathered enough funds to be able to rent out his desired space in the line of shops to get started with his dream once he graduated, and things had been going smoothly ever since. The young owner was more than happy that once he had signed the lease, Makoto had agreed to work on the space; painting, putting in shelves, ordering the needed refrigerated glass cabinets for the bouquets, and more all while his business partner finished with his schooling. Makoto always double checked with Rei before deciding on anything, not wanting to jump on any action that might displease the owner, which made it easier on both of them because Rei already knew exactly what he wanted and how he wanted to make it look.

Rei had the thought about wanting to expand his business once it turned out to be more successful than he thought months after they had officially opened, and Makoto's suggestion of possibly having someone on-hand for deliveries, in came Makoto's boyfriend Rin Matsuoka to fill that position.

Makoto and Rin had started dating through Rin's younger sister, Gou. Rin was good friends with Seijuurou Mikoshiba, his sister's current boyfriend, and the younger Matsuoka was tired of her brother complaining about the lack of dateable people that he would come across. Gou knew Rei through school as well with being the same age, and would often come visit her good friend while he was working at his shop. That's how she met Makoto, and once they got talking one afternoon, Gou immediately thought that the brunette was perfect for her brother and arranged for the two to meet and were together ever since.

It was a pleasurable set-up; whomever would call or come by to make an order specifically other than getting something right then and there, Rin would go out to deliver it to the desired location once it was complete. Rin was grateful that Makoto had gotten him this job so that he would have something to do during the day and would be able to contribute to his and Makoto's rent and other bills, and Makoto was glad that Rin would have other things to do during the day other than go on his daily runs and then lounge around the apartment all day. The redhead would go all over town to deliver the beautiful bouquets and arrangements throughout the day whenever needed on foot or his small moped, and would sometimes pick up food for his boyfriend and boss as a surprise.

_"After all, I am a delivery boy." He had said, placing lunch for the three of them on the back table, as he would do most days. "Plus it's no trouble at all."_

Rin's favorite place to go, mainly to pick up breakfast and snacks during the day, was the bakery located across the street. Rei and Makoto definitely agreed with the delivery boy, enjoying their freshly baked treats and coffee in the morning and even throughout the day on occasion. All the times that Rin had gone to fetch them their delectables and drinks, it was typically the same order: three iced coffees, and two doughnuts of their own favorites. Rin preferred a cinnamon glaze, Makoto favored chocolate, and Rei was one for the simplicity of custard-filled among trying other assorted flavors whenever they felt like mixing things up.

The bakery was mainly well-known for their doughnuts, but sold well with others like their muffins, crepes, and assortment of sweet and savory treats. It had been around longer than Rei's shop, the young business owner telling Makoto and Rin that he heard that it had been passed down the Hazuki line for generations and the current son, Nagisa, was now in charge. The blonde, about Rei's age, had hired his current head baker without any prior culinary schooling, and all the violet-eyed owner knew was that his family name was Nanase and he was the one who was making the intricate and out-of-the box doughnuts that they were putting out and would eat almost every single day. He had been hired on the spot once Nagisa had tried his green tea glaze along with a few other experimental flavors, knowing that with Nanase's help, the business would continue to be a success and everything would be perfect.

Nanase, also known as Haruka but preferred Haru, rarely wanted to be up front. While Nagisa frowned upon the idea , he didn't want to push his baker into something he disliked which in this case, was having to talk to people on a daily basis and keep up with the busy demand. He had managed to convince Haruka into at least being up front once a week, either in the morning or before closing when they weren't all that busy, and not being able to deny his boss' pleading and wide pink eyes, he agreed with a sigh. He had met the florist shop workers though, when the trio had all come in together to greet the new employee. Nagisa had introduced them one by one and Haruka had just shrugged and mumbled a 'nice to meet you'. Haruka did get along with Rei, seeing him every so often and managed to get through minimal small talk. Makoto would smile and talk to Haruka about either work things or his favorite, the stray cats that would show up at the park down the street and even though he would never admit it, Haruka always enjoyed listening to the tall brunette speak. And as for Rin...the redhead always seemed to get on his last nerve whenever they would meet and would always try to talk to him the least he could.

Nagisa and Rei had spoken months ago once business had picked up for the bespectacled florist, setting up weekly orders for fresh flowers to be delivered to be displayed in his shop to add more to the atmosphere and offered free coffee and the occasional treat whenever Rin would come by with said-order. Rei agreed, deciding on every three to four days, making sure that the flowers would always be fresh and would mix well with the scent of the bustling bakery. They had become friends when Nagisa had come over while Rei and Makoto were overlooking the installment of their glass cases, the blonde offering half a dozen treats and the promise that if they ever needed anything, he was just across the street and '_that's what friends are for, mister Ryugazaki_!'. He would always greet Rin with a wide smile when he came through the door with his arms full with the flowers, eagerly taking them to replace the bouquets with coffee and payment for Rei.

It was one early morning that Rin came by before his shift to get a sweet breakfast for himself, Makoto, and Rei, that he saw _that _black-haired boy at the counter. He looked bored, almost, half-lidded blue eyes dull and bangs in his face, wiping down the marble counter and not even acknowledging Rin's presence even when the bell dinged when he opened and closed the door. Rin leaned against the counter, tapping his fingers on the cold marble and waited for the employee to greet him and ask for his order.

_If Nagisa were here, I would already be walking out of here with my stuff_..., Rin thought. _This guy always gives me trouble._

Rin didn't _exactly_ dislike Haruka. He just thought that he needed to work on his social skills and the way he acted irritated him sometimes. Plus he rarely even saw the young man, and all of their encounters ended with glares and huffs with irritation for both sides. Of course, Rin's big and overbearing personality was a big factor as well, because his own boyfriend and Rei got along with Haruka just fine, but when it came to himself, it was almost like an argument bubbling and waiting to happen.

Rin cleared his throat, watching Haruka glance up and back down at the cloth in his hand, expression not change one bit.

"Can I help you?" He spoke, and Rin raised an eyebrow.

"You do know I've been standing here for awhile now, right?" Rin narrowed his eyes. "We going to play this game again where you pretend like I don't exist?"

The young man simply shrugged, stopping to fold the slightly damp cloth and placing it next to the register. He bent down to wipe his hands on a clean and towel underneath the counter, coming back up to look at Rin, almost seeming as annoyed as the delivery boy.

"Are you going to get something or not?"

_Is this guy serious?!_

"I'll just have the usual." Rin reached into his pocket to pull out his wallet, and from the corner of his eye saw the Haruka not move an inch but instead, continue to stare at the redhead with annoyance plastered on his face. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Do you seriously expect me to know what your usual is?" He huffed. "You know that I'm usually in the back. You've seen me what, less than a dozen times and expect me to know?"

"Jeez, where's Nagisa-"

"Nagisa's coming in later today, I agreed to open and be up front and take care of the things in the back, like usual when that happens. I typically come in after he does, but coming in early does let me get started on making things ahead of schedule." Haruka was growing more impatient by the second. "And speaking of, it would be great if we could hurry this up because the extra dough to cover for the breakfast rush will be ready in a few minutes and it'd be nice to get to that."

Rin's eyebrow twitched, getting the exact amount needed for his order and put it down in front of the baker. "Two each of chocolate, cinnamon, and custard doughnuts and three iced coffees, _Haruka_. Remember that next time."

_"Haru_." He corrected and glared at Rin, placing the money in the register and going off to get the redhead's order completed as quickly as he could so that the next batch of pastries could be completed. Red eyes watched Haruka's movements, going from between the display case of fresh doughnuts and the coffee area, returning to face Rin in no time with the same annoyed expression.

"There."

"I never ask but I always wonder, if you make all of this, how long does it really take for it to get done?" Rin was actually curious, hands resting on the cardboard holding the cold drinks. "Because I come pretty early, regardless if you're here or not, and there's always a decent amount of stuff in the case ready to go and it's hard to believe that it's just leftovers, I don't think that's how Nagisa would handle things."

"We always make a smaller batch with premade dough the day before to satisfy the early customers like yourself. And no, it doesn't take all that long to do it. Nagisa or myself usually deal with the leftovers by the end of the day." Haruka crossed his arms. "Like I said, I have an entire batch waiting in the back so I can make enough to get us through the breakfast rush and then I have to work on the glazes and do other things, so. Plus, Makoto and Rei are probably waiting for you to show up..."

Shrugging and muttering a 'thanks', Rin took hold of the drinks and pink box decorated with a cute penguin and cursive lettering, balancing them in his hands as he walked out the door and across the street to his workplace. Resting the box on top of the cups, Rin managed to pull the door open and was hit by the familiar and comforting smell of flowers, letting the door close behind him and the bell alerting Makoto and Rei that he arrived.

"Breakfast, boys!" Rin set the things on the front counter, something that was only allowed during the morning (lunch or otherwise would have to go in the back in the employees-only small lounge which also counted as an office and storage, much to Rei's displeasure of it all with having little space but in the end made it all work), waiting for his green-eyed boyfriend to come into his view.

"Just a minute, Matsuoka!" Rei had called, followed by the sound of the automatic sprinklers for the multiple cases holding already-arranged flowers going off to give them their light morning shower.

Placing the clear straws in all three of the plastic cups, Rin took one for himself, taking small sips and continued to wait and listen to Makoto humming from the other room as he did his morning routine of inventory. The brunette had to make sure he knew what was coming in today, what orders needed to be filled and delivered or picked up at what time, and get the sales from the previous day for Rei to look over and put in their expense log. His heart leapt when Makoto came from the back room, smile on his face as he approached the redhead and kissed his forehead, flipping open the box and gently taking one of the chocolate pastries in his hands along with a napkin.

"You look extra grumpy this morning." Makoto teased, noticing the distant yet 'it's only eight in the morning yet I already almost punched someone' look. "Did Nagisa joke around again and put red pepper flakes along with the cinnamon in the glaze and then ask you to try it?"

"S'not that." Rin chewed on the straw, fingers tapping the sides. "Besides, he knows better not to do that again."

Makoto swallowed the bite that was in his mouth, licking the bit of chocolate from his lip. "Then was it Haru?" The way Rin's fingers clenched into the plastic was all Makoto needed to know. "Ah, so it _was_..."

"I don't see why Nagisa can put up with him. He seems like a pretty awful employee and people-person if you ask me."

"Don't you think that it could be the other way around, like how Haru can put up with Nagisa?" Makoto laughed, and Rin simply shrugged. "But, really. He knows a good employee when he sees one. And the proof is right here." The brunette handed his brooding boyfriend his cinnamon doughnut with a napkin and Rin took it with a grunt. "Haru isn't so bad once you get to know him, Rin."

"Would it kill him to smile once in awhile? I swear he has that frown permanently on his face and it's been _months_."

Rei came into the main area, raising an eyebrow at the topic of his employees conversation. "Haru again?"

"Haru again." Makoto replied, picking up his coffee and swirling the ice around before taking a sip. "If I didn't know any better and with y'know, being your boyfriend, then I'd say that someone has a crush."

"I do not have a crush on...on _that_!" Rin's face reddened, scowling.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" Makoto nudged Rin playfully as the redhead bit into the pastry. "But you have to admit, he is pretty cute." Rin sputtered, glaring at his giggling boyfriend. "That was one of the points that Nagisa told us when he hired Haru, wasn't it, Rei?"

"Fairly certain." Rei wiped his mouth with his napkin. "With the other perks being that he didn't mind coming in so early and had interesting flavor pairings to try to see if they could sell."

Makoto moved away from the main counter, drink in hand, looking out the large window across the street to try to peek into the pastry shop. Rin looked over, frowning, balling up the napkin in his hand and threw it at the florist. "Oi, come back here."

"Rin, shhh!" Makoto put his hand to the glass window in an attempt to see across the street better, in hopes that he could see Haruka if he was still at the front counter.

"It's not like he can hear us or anything!"

* * *

Wiping his forehead with his arm, Haruka sighed.

He surely wasn't used to going back and forth between the backroom to work on the pastries and glazes and the front to take care of orders and such. Taking care of customers was Nagisa's job, the young owner's personality perfect to make small talk while going back and forth between the large display case, the drinks, and back to the register. Thankfully Nagisa came back hours ago, before the lunch rush started, giving Haruka some last minute help with restocking the glass case from the breakfast crowd and helped with trying to make a batch of glaze that they could use as the base for the other needed glazes and could be put in the fridge to last through the week.

"Haru!" Nagisa poked his head in the back, pink eyes as big as ever, watching Haruka portion off the dough. "How'd things go this morning?"

"Fine. Busy as usual, but fine. I'm getting used to the rushes." Haruka only shrugged, wiping his hands on his blue apron. "That delivery boy gave me trouble again, though."

"Ah, that Matsuoka is a real charm, isn't he?" Nagisa leaned in the doorway. The rush had died down and the last pleased customer left, leaving a lull where no one was inside. "Makoto really has his hands full with that one. Rei, too."

"I'd say."

The bell on the door ringed again, signaling the bakery employees that someone had entered, and Nagisa smiled once he heard Makoto's familiar voice call out for the blonde. Haruka glanced up, seeing the short blonde back at the counter talking to Makoto who had placed a boquet on the counter, whom he's only seen a few times and talked to maybe twice briefly, and all those times including now, he was always smiling.

And it always made his heart do flips to see those gentle green eyes and that smile.

"Ah, sorry, Rin's out on a long delivery so I agreed to come instead. It's no trouble!"

"You're such an angel, Mako!"

Makoto laughed and his face reddened slightly, scratching the back of his neck and green eyes met with blue, and he waved shyly at the young baker. Haruka felt his face heat up and went back to his work, heart beating against his continued to listen to Makoto and Nagisa make small talk before they said their goodbyes, hearing the door open and shut once again. Haruka heard Nagisa step to his side, taking a lump of the portioned dough to help the young baker out, taking it to the machine so that they could make another batch of doughnuts.

"Hey, Haru." Nagisa spoke after awhile, still concentrated on the dough, as Haruka was.

"Hmmm?"

"Makoto apologized for Rin's behavior this morning."

Haruka's hands stopped, resting against the pile of dough. "...He did?"

Nagisa hummed in response. "He did."

He could feel his face heat up once again, and Haruka was glad that he was facing away from Nagisa. The fluttering in his chest returned once he thought of the kind and warming smile that Makoto had given him just mere minutes ago, which turned into a dull ache when Rin came back into the picture, since he was the one that Makoto's true affections were for.

Haruka Nanase, did indeed have a crush on someone that he couldn't have, with a boyfriend that he couldn't stand.

* * *

_Author's note: and here's my next big project! I know, I know, I was the same way when writing this part because it's all words and backstory, but I promise it will get interesting! The inspiration for this actually came from seeing a picture from a Japanese Krispy Kreme advertisement with HARU in bold lettering, I quickly talked to senpai and therefore the outline was made and it was born! I'm really looking forward to working on this more, I was actually going to post this next week while I'm in Seattle for Sakuracon, but figured as I'm now printing out all the things I need and am at a computer, I figured that now was just as good! Just...ignore mistakes if there are any, I used my 'work late, edit late' tactics as usual ^^;_


	2. Chapter 2

_Part two_

* * *

Nagisa watched with curious eyes, hand still wiping down one of the small tables, gaze locked on Haruka.

His employee (and good friend, even if Haruka didn't think the same way) was in the middle of restocking one of the pastry cases with fresh product, and he caught blue eyes wavering to the side to look out the large glass windows, specifically across the street. He followed Haruka's line of vision, smile spreading on his face once he saw Makoto at the counter helping a customer with something, and then back at Haruka. Finishing the table he was on, Nagisa walked over to lean against the front counter. He bent forward slightly to get a better look at Haruka who had gotten back to his work, carefully putting each treat one by one from the sheet pan he was balancing on his knee into the specific area of the case. Haruka sighed, knowing that Nagisa was staring at him, and didn't bother to tilt his head ever so slightly to know that his boss was smiling as well.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing..." Nagisa said, his finger making flower patterns against the marble countertop, and his smile widened once Haruka finally looked up to make eye contact. "Just wondering what's making you blush..."

"I-I'm not blushing!" Haruka looked back to his near-empty sheet pan, pace quickening to finish and retreat back to the back room.

"I'm just taking a wild guess, but...tall, green eyes, voice like honey and brown hair that you just want to run your hands through?" Haruka's face got redder and Nagisa couldn't help but hold back a laugh.

"N-no! I wasn't thinking or looking at Makoto..." Once the last doughnut made its way in the case, Haruka quickly shut the glass panel, standing up to lock himself in the back until he was sure Nagisa would drop the subject. "That's...stupid-"

"I didn't mention Makoto's name, Haru." The blonde attempted to follow Haruka but the door was shut before he could step foot across the threshold, hearing the lock slide in place. "So you _were_ staring at him!"

_"Go away, Nagisa!"_

"Haru..." Nagisa sighed, pressing the left side of his face to the door. "You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

_"There's nothing to talk about!"_

Nagisa stood on his toes, peeking into the small window and frowned once he saw Haruka sitting with his arms around his legs, chin resting on his knees and looking at the large mixer in the corner of the room. What he wanted to do was go in there with a baked good in hand to give to his employee, to sit down next to him and just be there because there was obviously something wrong, but Nagisa knew that Haruka just wanted his space.

"I know, Haru. But you have to admit, Makoto is really handsome!"

Haruka only groaned, tossing his used gloves into the trash and waited for Nagisa to get away from the door. And hopefully by then, would drop the subject of Makoto. To pass the time, the young baker decided to start on one of his new glaze ideas, one that would take the simple green tea flavor and combine it with another flavor to make something completely new.

However, when Haruka started to pour the green tea powder, there was only one thing on his mind due to the brilliant green color and noticed that he reached for the cherries, which were red just like someone's hair, and he sighed in frustration.

* * *

"You know what today is, Rin."

Rin looked at Rei as he adjusted his jacket, eyes landing on the large bouquet in his boss' hands. He had just come back from a delivery across town moments ago, to a woman who was getting ready for a baby shower, and she kept on offering that he would stay to have something to drink and relax, and it wasn't until he faked a phonecall from Rei that he could finally leave. Makoto smiled at him, taking the bouquet from Rei and passed it off to Rin, kissing his cheek.

"If you see Haru, remember what we talked about, okay?" Makoto poked Rin's nose. "Be nice."

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

Just like always, Rin braced himself upon entering the bakery, Nagisa's order in-hand. As soon as the scent of fresh baked dough and coffee hit his senses, so did the owner's loud voice.

"Rin! Nice to see you!" Nagisa leaned forward on his elbows, smile wide as the redhead stepped forward. "Ah, Rei chose a beautiful selection, as per usual!"

"Yeah, that's kind of his thing." He passed off the extra large bouquet to the blonde, tapping his fingers against the marble once his hands were empty. "It'd be a shock to everyone if there was the off-chance that an order didn't meet the expectations of the customer."

Nagisa nodded in agreement, and clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. "Say...since it came to my mind earlier, do you know when Rei's next day off is?"

A red eyebrow raised in question and he swore that he heard a scoff come from the back room. "...Why?"

"Because I was thinking of asking him out to dinner and knowing when he has his next day off would be nice!" He batted his eyelashes at the redhead. "_Please_, Rin?"

"Why don't you just ask him? He's literally right across the street." Rin gestured behind him. "Besides, you could've asked Mako and he would have told before asking questions."

Nagisa only groaned, taking the vase nearest the case in his hands and shuffled to the back to dispose of the old arrangement for the new flowers. The delivery boy just leaned against the counter, listening to the blonde go on about how _he should've asked Makoto _and took out his phone, sending a quick text to Makoto if he or Rei were in the mood for anything sweet since after all, he was across the street already. Halfway through his message, a mass of black hair caught his attention and he glanced upwards, immediately mirroring Haruka's frown. Rin quickly finished and sent his text, pushing his phone back in his pocket and sighed, watching Haruka kneel down with another full sheet pan to empty into the other large case.

He remembered what Makoto had said to him, _try to be nice!_, and Rin sighed.

"So, uh...restocking...that's...good?" Rin bit the inside of his cheek, already wanting to back out of the attempted conversation.

"Something that just has to be done." Haruka didn't bother looking at Rin and only continued to focus on his work.

"I bet your hands get sticky, huh?" _Dammit Matsuoka, what are you saying?!_

Haruka raised a hand, showing that he had on a plastic glove. "This is kind of needed."

"Oh..."

A grunt came from the young baker, a blue eye shifting to stare at Rin at the counter. "You're acting weird."

"Weird?" Rin blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Yeah. You're being nice, and that's weird."

The redhead opened his mouth to say something but Nagisa brushed past him, holding a smaller vase filled with some of the flowers from the large bouquet to place on one of the tables he had just cleaned. He turned around, hands on his hips, looking at both Rin and the top of Haruka's head, knowing that within minutes that the two would start bickering at any minute.

"Now, now, you two. Get along!"

Rin rolled his eyes. "What's so wrong with being nice? _Makoto_ thinks I'm nice, and so does Rei and you, Nagisa-" He huffed and paused when he saw Haruka's expression crumble slightly, blue eyes looking down at his hands holding the tray and bottom lip between his teeth. He flinched when his phone chimed in his pocket, getting it back out to see that Makoto had responded. "Hey, Nagisa..." Rin slid his phone shut, reaching to pull out his wallet. "Just some coffee this time."

The owner nodded, stepping back behind the counter to get Rin's order of three iced coffees as red eyes continued to stare at Haruka begin his work again. It didn't take long at all for Nagisa to be holding a cardboard tray with his drinks on it out to him, snapping him out of his thoughts and placed his money on the counter. Nagisa opened his mouth to protest, wanting to say that it was fine and didn't have to pay, but Rin just shrugged.

"It's fine, Nagisa."

Rin left without another word, going back across the street to his own workplace, holding the door open to let out a customer who smiled and thanked the redhead. Stepping inside and placing the cardboard holder on the counter in front of Makoto, the brunette knew immediately that something was bothering his boyfriend. Makoto waited a few minutes, finishing with trimming the thorns from the current boquet he was working on, before he cleared his throat to get Rin's attention.

"Something bothering you?"

"I'll tell you when we get home, okay?" Rin sighed, flicking the water droplets from his hand once he set his plastic cup down.

* * *

After eating dinner (consisting of simple half-burnt grilled cheese and tomato soup because it was Makoto's night to cook), Makoto and Rin stood shoulder-to-shoulder at the sink, Rin washing the dishes and passing them off to Makoto so he could dry and put the now clean bowls, plates, and silverware away in their respective places. The couple talked about their day, about the customer that tried to get away with a discounted final price because he thought that the roses were bruised and the cat that had made its way into the store and was woken from its peaceful nap underneath the desk in the backroom when Rei shouted once he found it. Of course Makoto had a laugh about the woman Rin dealt with, and it was a good thing that at least she was planning the baby shower instead of it being for her, much to Rin's protests of '_how does that help?!'._

And then came the topic that had been on Makoto's (and Rin's) mind since that late afternoon: what was bothering Rin.

Makoto ran his hand through Rin's hair, smiling once he tugged slightly on his ponytail, the action making red eyes flutter shut and a sigh escape his lips. They were nestled together on their couch in the living room, silence lingering in the air as Makoto waited patiently for Rin to speak.

"...I think..." Rin thought of his words carefully. "That...well, you know that Haruka and I don't get along, and earlier when I dropped of Nagisa's order we argued a bit and when I mentioned you he...just clammed right up and looked really sad."

"Sad?"

"Yeah. Almost like he was going to cry or something." He pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled. "...I think he likes you, Mako."

Green eyes blinked, the brunette almost at a loss for words. "You think he really does?"

"I don't know, but I do know that he doesn't like me, and if he really does like you, then it makes sense that he would act that way if I were to bring you up?"

"Well..." Makoto sighed and let his thumb graze across Rin's cheek. "I just...don't really know how to react to that?"

Rin breathed through his nose and opened his eyes to look at Makoto. His boyfriend looked torn, knowing that Haruka was probably still upset about the situation even though that it was just a possible idea rather than the actual truth. What if Haruka actually did have a crush on Makoto? With a sigh Rin shifted, kissing the side of Makoto's hand.

"...Do you like him?"

"Wh-what? That's a sudden question..." Makoto frowned. "Why does that matter?"

The youngest shrugged and rolled himself so that his head was now in Makoto's lap. "You did say that you wanted to spice things up in the bedroom..."

Makoto rolled his eyes. "For one that was you, and two, I think that he doesn't just like me purely because he wants to have sex."

"But do you _like_ him, Makoto?"

He bit his lip, the conversation getting personal. "I don't know, we've only taked a few times and it was always me doing the talking and he _is _really handsome...if you were to ask me when his birthday is, or his favorite thing for dinner is or what he liked to do best, I wouldn't know. He isn't much of a talker. Sure he'll respond, but he never talks about himself."

"Mackerel's his favorite, that's all I know." Rin looked up and saw Makoto's blank expression and raised an eyebrow. "I saw him taking his lunch one day and that's what it was. Even Nagisa confirmed that he eats it like...every day. Makes it himself."

"So there's one thing we know, is that he likes cooking, specifically mackerel, and baking things..." The brunette brought his head down to kiss his boyfriend. "So...what do we do, then? Someone that likes me, isn't too fond of you. You try to be nice, and he just thinks that you're being weird."

"I'll just...keep on being tolerable towards him? Maybe we should ask him to lunch sometime. Learn more about him. Because maybe he really isn't all that bad..."

"That's the spirit." A smile spread on Makoto's face, kissing Rin again and his hands resting on his hips. "Tomorrow should we ask?"

Rin nodded and pressed his lips to Makoto's, eagerly kissing the brunette. "You okay with sharing me if everything works out?"

Makoto snorted and bit Rin's ear, smiling when he felt the redhead groan. "I should be asking _you_ that, Rin."

* * *

Early the next morning, Makoto walked into the bakery with a plan set in his mind that he and Rin discussed hours ago. Stepping up to the counter he could hear movement in the back room, and Nagisa talking to someone, most likely being Haruka, either about random things or a new recipie Haruka wanted to try. But the brunette couldn't help but smile when he heard Nagisa mention Rei, knowing that he had been trying to get his boss' attention for the last two weeks.

"Hello? Nagisa?" Makoto called and lightly tapped his knuckle to the counter, waiting for the blonde to come into his view at any moment. "Haru?"

Makoto continued to listen to the hushed voices, clearly making out Haruka's low voice clearly disagree with something that Nagisa must have said. A minute had passed and Makoto knocked again, wondering what those two were talking about to be taking this long. With a final muffled shout Haruka was shoved out of the room and to the front counter, the door slamming behind him so that he couldn't retreat back to his safe place. Makoto smiled slightly, realizing that Haruka's face was light pink and his eyes were wide in embarrassment.

"Hi, Haru."

"H-hi..." The baker mumbled, hands fidgeting at his sides. "So, um...you here for something?"

He shook his head, reaching into his jacket to pull out a piece of paper and a single daisy and held them out for Haruka to take, now smiling wide at the stunned young man. Haruka hesitated, hand reached outwards to take Makoto's offering, biting his lip.

_You know you want to take it, Haru!_

_But...what if it's just part of some trick? But it's Makoto, and he would never do anything dishonest._

"It's okay, I swear it's nothing bad."

With a final mental push and Makoto's reassurance, Haruka gently took the single flower and piece of paper, face heating up when his and Makoto's fingers brushed together slightly. Once it was out of his hands, Makoto stood and waved goodbye to the flustered baker, exiting the shop so that he could start on his morning routine, just as Haruka and Nagisa were doing. Haruka continued to stare out the large windows, watching Makoto walk across the street and heart beating against his chest.

Remembering that he had taken what Makoto offered to him, he looked down at his hands, placing the daisy down on the counter and unfolded the piece of paper, eyes widening at the green words against crinkled white.

_Meet me and Rin for lunch sometime, if you want to?_

_-Makoto, xxx-xxx-xxxx_

* * *

_Author's note: I promise, it'll get interesting (hopefully) in the next part! It really focuses on Haru's feelings and whatnot. But fingers crossed that this is just as good._


	3. Chapter 3

_Part three_

* * *

Haruka Nanase preferred to keep to himself.

Even when he was in school, he didn't bother making friends. He only spoke and interacted when he truly had to, and got lost in his thoughts when he should have been focusing on his studies. It was a miracle that he graduated with passing grades when he spent most of his time daydreaming, but it didn't matter once that he was finally out of school and could do as he pleased. Haruka also didn't bother with going to college afterwards, not wanting to waste money or having to take out loans and then be in debt on something that he thought was a waste of time for himself personally, and instead traveled all over Japan and some of Europe with the money he had been saving for years.

Where his interests did lie was baking. His grandmother had hundreds of recipes that she had saved over the years of her life, and when Haruka was little, they would go through her recipes and decide to make something together. Breads, cakes, cookies, anything that was in her collective box of clippings and previous handed down family recipes, he adored to spend time with her and when she passed, the box and along with some other possession of hers, went to Haruka. And when Haruka traveled, he added his own recipes to his grandmother's box. At multiple points in his life from his grandmother, and people that he had come by, had suggested that since Haruka was most interested in baking, that he go to a culinary school to improve his skills and even learn something new since it wasn't a traditional academic school and it would play better to his interests. But he only shook his head, denying the suggestions. When he did travel, however, Haruka learned the basics of multiple languages so he could communicate and had opportunities to work with multiple professional bakers, instead learning from them rather than a instructor at a school, taking in all of the critique and praise that he could and his skills improved. And while he wasn't a 'people person' and hated having to talk to people, the trip definitely helped his social skills.

While he was in Paris, he stumbled upon a tattoo parlor one evening after walking to his hotel. Haruka hesitated, hand over his wallet as the thought of having something permanent on his skin was actually interesting to him and if he put it in a place where no one would see, it wouldn't be an issue. And with a deep breath, an hour later and a chunk of his money gone, Haruka walked out with a small blue dolphin on his hip: a reminder of when he would go to the aquarium and see the dolphins to relax and think on particularly hard days, and partially for the nickname he had received from one of the bakers because she thought that he was as graceful as a dolphin when he moved through the kitchen and between the others in the room. Thinking about it the first few times was silly, of course, but as time went on, Haruka took the nickname with a smile and nod.

As for relationships, there were only two young men involved in Haruka's 'love' life. He knew of his sexuality in high school and accepted it, dating one of his classmates for a brief amount of time before breaking it off at the end of his third year because they were going to go their separate ways and both thought that it wouldn't last. The second was an interesting man from Germany, and a fellow baker who he worked with when he was learning to make chocolate sauces and various other things, which ended as quickly as it started because Haruka had still more countries to visit and agreeing to initiate the relationship wasn't a mistake, but something that he didn't fully think out and resulted in an understanding break up with no hard feelings and words of encouragement.

Once Haruka was back in Japan and resting comfortably from his long European adventure, he decided to bite the bullet and go out to search for a job in his preferred field which proved to be more difficult than he thought. Haruka knew he was talented, extremely, and he ignored the requirements of needing prior experience and schooling, papers and all, resulting in not getting hired. After several rejections Haruka was to his limit, wanting to just stop applying and possibly just go back to Europe and stay there, when he stumbled upon a 'help wanted' sign in a bakery in a strip of shops. He had been to the area before, knowing that the bakery was there for awhile, and even going in a few times, but he had always thought that since it was family owned that they would have no need for an outsider.

And so after staring at the sign for ten minutes and debating whether or not it would end up in his favor, Haruka went in, and Nagisa was more than ecstatic to hire him once they had talked for an hour and the baker offered to show the owner what he could do. Nagisa was more than impressed at hearing that Haruka had done so much outside of the typical 'culinary school student' norm and traveled to get hands-on experience instead, and very interested in the stories that he told. When Haruka demonstrated his talents, Nagisa was speechless when Haruka executed each step flawlessly without any issue, and Haruka presented a half-dozen simple glazed doughnuts and also French macaroons for the owner to try.

"Nanase, I think that you're the perfect choice." Nagisa had Haruka with a wide smile, getting out the box of his family's recipes to show to Haruka.

* * *

"Wait, so let me get this straight-" Rei paused, drying his hands on a towel. He gestured towards Makoto and Rin, eyebrow raised, and mouth open. "...You two are going to try to get into some kind of...thing, with Haru?"

"Haru likes Mako." Rin shrugged. "And Mako thinks that Haru is cute."

"I think you're cute, too! Of course I do." Makoto tried to be reassuring to his boyfriend. "And well, we realized that we don't know anything about him so I gave him my number and offered that we all go to lunch sometime you know, to get to know one another and see where it goes from there but he hasn't responded yet."

"So what if he does say yes, you two are just going to be in an open relationship or...?"

Makoto sprayed the glass display case, wiping it down with a clean rag, humming in response. "That depends all on Haru."

Rei blinked. "Doesn't he hate Rin, though? They're always fighting."

The mentioned redhead clicked his tongue against his teeth and snorted. "Not for long. Hopefully. Who could hate me? I'm irresistible."

It had been an especially slower day than usual; pouring rain had lessened the amount of foot traffic so unless someone needed to go out, there were only a few people who braved to go out in the rain. There were less calls as well, knowing that they did do deliveries, but there was the possibility that they felt bad that Rin had to go out in this weather (but it only made his will to get a car to make deliveries easier grow so that weather wouldn't ever be an issue), so the three sat there around the main counter, doing various things to keep themselves busy as the time passed until they could close up. Rin and Makoto found themselves looking out the window every so often, staring into the somewhat busy pastry shop. Nagisa was taking care of the customers as usual, smile wide on his face and getting orders out at his usual pace. The couple was surprised that the current customer at the counter was talking to Nagisa for awhile, and the blonde had turned around, mouth moving as if he was saying something and moments later Haruka appeared behind Nagisa.

"What's going on?" Makoto wiped away the fog caused by his breathing against the shop window, watching Haruka's cheeks turn pink and the woman who seemed like was causing it. "Who is she?"

"She's making him blush pretty damn good..." Red eyes narrowed and a sigh of relief escaped Rin's lips as the woman finally waved goodbye and left the store with a bag in her hands, opening her umbrella and continued down the strip of shops. Rin turned on his heel away from looking out the window next to Makoto, moving towards the front counter and gripped the store phone, dialing the third number down from the pad next to it, and waited.

"Rin?" The brunette started, but was only shushed by Rin once the person on the other line had answered.

"Hello, Nagisa? Yeah, it's Rin." Makoto could hear the blonde on the line, and was looking back and forth between his boyfriend and Nagsa across the street. "No, no usual today. But I was wanting to try something that we haven't had in awhile. You still have those macaroons, right? Mako has an extreme sweet tooth today and figured that'd be perfect. And I was wondering, if it wouldn't be too much trouble at all, if Haru wasn't busy if he could bring them over...you'll ask him? Great."

Rin leaned against the counter, cradling the phone between his cheek and shoulder, glancing up at Makoto who was looking at him with a stunned expression and mouth hanging open. The couple was silent as they heard Nagisa's muffled voice coming from the phone, repeatedly asking Haruka if he could do this one thing, and two minutes later after the constant barrage of _"Please please please!", _and the happy cheer signaled the two that Haruka finally agreed.

"He'll be over soon? Great. Thanks again, Nagisa!" Rin hung up, placing the phone back in the cradle charger and smiled at Makoto, who blinked several times at his seemingly proud boyfriend. "Well?"

"I can't believe you just did that!"

* * *

Ten minutes later and several deep breaths later to calm himself down, Haruka cradled the pink box in his arm containing the colorful macaroons, opening the florist shop door. He sighed once the scent of the different flowers reached his senses, definitely something different from the constant sweet smells in Nagisa's shop that he was around every day, and walked to the front counter where Rei was flipping through a large, black catalog.

"U-um..." Haruka placed the pink box next to Rei's hand resting on the counter and surprised purple eyes met nervous blue. "I have a order for Rin?"

"I'll go get him, then." Rei smiled at the baker, leaving the catalog open and walking to the back room.

Haruka rubbed his slightly sweaty palms against his dark jeans, taking another deep breath as he waited for Rin to show up. All he wanted was to get the money from the redhead and then get out of the flower shop as fast as he could. Why Nagisa asked if he could do this delivery when they don't even _do_ deliveries was beyond him, but in the end he had agreed only to stop the blonde from begging him until he would have said yes. Haruka adjusted the straps of his apron, unable to stay still with multiple thoughts running through his mind. The order was for _Rin. Rin _who ordered it for _Makoto_. _Makoto_ who he felt something for, but was with _Rin. _

"Oh, you came!"

Haruka perked up once he heard that voice that made his heart beat faster, only a mere few inches away from Makoto as he leaned forward over the counter, smiling at him. Rin followed behind, standing on Makoto's right, an equal smile on his face.

"Your order..." Haruka finally spoke, pushing the pink box forward to Rin and Makoto. "Just freshly made an hour ago, too."

"Thank you so much for bringing it over, Haru. I bet they taste amazing, as usual." Haruka made a small sound in response at Makoto's praise, looking down slightly to cover the blush spreading on his cheeks.

"It's...no problem..." Haruka cleared his throat. "Just my job, and all."

"So, Haru..." Rin leaned on the counter next to Makoto, looking at him with direct eye contact. "Why haven't you called Mako yet?"

Haruka was taken for surprise by Rin's sudden question, but his tone wasn't angry in the slightest. It was more...concerned, by anything. Maybe even worried.

_If Rin asked, does that mean...is he in on something that I don't know?_

"I-I've just been really busy, that's all." Haruka absentmindedly felt the hair on the back of his neck. "All I have time for lately is work, I'm sorry."

"We should tip off Nagisa that he's working you too hard, right Mako?" The redhead nudged his boyfriend, who nodded in agreement. "Which is why you should go out to lunch with us sometime, y'know? Get a breather, change of pace and all."

"Maybe, I don't know..." He simply shrugged, trying to keep the conversation to a minimum.

"Oh, Haru? Did you like the daisy?" Makoto changed the subject, and smiled when Haruka gave a slight nod. He leaned down more as Rin reached over him to grasp a rose from the bundle on the countertop, a deep red color, and the delivery boy happily held it out to a stunned Haruka.

"Then here. Have another."

"I-I...I should really get back to the shop, speaking of...Nagisa's probably wondering where I am..." Haruka shuffled backwards, hands glued at his sides and refused the rose offering, heart feeling as if it would come up through his throat with how..._affectionate_ both Makoto and Rin were being and how they were looking at him. Like...they both _liked_ him. "E-Enjoy the macaroons!"

"But Haru, wait, we still have to pay you-!" Makoto called out, but Haruka was already out the door and jogging back across the street. He sighed, resting his head on the counter and Rin nudged his cheek with a pink cookie. "You scared him away, Rin."

"Me? Why is it my fault?" Rin had placed the rose back in the bundle, taking a macaroon for himself and putting the whole thing in his mouth.

"Everything work out well?"

Rei walked back into the room, several folders in his hands to update the catalog but once he saw his employees sulking on the counter, his previously asked question was already answered.

"Haru ran away." Rin whined, stuffing his mouth with another cookie.

"I thought you said that these were for me..."

"Well now they're mine, too."

The owner sighed, placing the folders on top of the still-opened catalog and reached for the phone, dialing quickly and placing it against his ear. Makoto and Rin turned their heads to watch Rei patiently wait for the person on the other line answer, still lazily eating the fresh macaroons due to their unsuccessful encounter with Haruka.

"Yes, Nagisa? It's Rei. I have a favor to ask..."

* * *

It had been hours since Haruka had talked to Rin and Makoto, and his heart still felt the same: feeling as if it was going to burst.

Haruka busied himself with his standard closing procedures; cleaning the machines, making sure all the ovens were turned off, putting things away so they were ready for tomorrow, anything that would get his mind off of the two across the street. Luckily Nagisa hadn't said a word about it to him, and haven't talked since he got back. All he wanted to do was finally close up, go home, make a quick dinner, sit in his tub for awhile, and then try to get some sleep before starting another new day. While Haruka was closing the large fridge once he set the glazes inside, Nagisa had come up behind him, arms folded across his chest. The baker raised an eyebrow, moving away from the blonde to continue the last few things he needed to do, but Nagisa just trailed behind him, expression not changing.

"Haru..." He sighed, finally breaking the silence. "We have to talk."

"About what?"

"About the fact that you like Makoto"

Haruka froze in his place, closing his eyes and trying to keep himself calm. "Then there's nothing to talk about."

"There's plenty to talk about, Haru! You can't just ignore this."

"What, so you want me to talk about someone that makes me feel...feel so different and happy when I think about him, but it doesn't even matter because he's with someone else?" Haruka gripped the countertop, not turning to face Nagisa. "And it just...hurts when he's so nice and I don't know what the hell is going on with Rin because he's being actually...pleasant for once and I don't know!"

"Haru..." He could hear Nagisa step towards him, and felt small arms wrap around his waist in a comforting hug, and Haruka forgot that Nagisa was one to express his comfort with hugs. "That's because they like you. Both of them."

"...That's ridiculous."

"Haruka Nanase, stop being so negative! See, if I were in your place, and it turns out that the guy I liked, liked me back, and his boyfriend was okay with it, I would go for it!" Nagisa squeezed gently. "Haru...I want you to be happy. I know that you like Makoto because the way you look at him across the street and how your eyes seem to light up whenever just his _name _is mentioned. I know you don't like Rin because you two always seem to fight whenever you come into contact, but how has that been, lately?"

"We..." Haruka swallowed the lump in his throat, thinking back to the last time he and Rin got mad at each other. "We haven't fought at all, lately."

"So what does that tell you? It tells you that he wants to get to know you and not fight, Haru. And Makoto, too. I know that they asked you out to lunch, and I know you're shy, but I think that if you went, it would honestly be the start of something special!"

Haruka's head was spinning. "But...both of them?"

"You're just really, really lucky, Haru." Haruka turned his head to the side and Nagisa was smiling at him. "They're both really great, and I know that once things get going, you'll be over the moon happy all the time."

He couldn't help the slight smile that spread across his own lips, and the feeling of his cheeks warming up. "Y-You think so?"

"I know so. Now, the next time that they ask you to lunch or anything, say yes!" The blonde detached himself, hands moving to untie his apron and hang it on the hook on the back of the door. "If I can bring myself to ask Rei out on a date, then you can definitely agree to a lunch date with those two."

Biting his lip and fighting back his smiles, Haruka nodded, doing the same as Nagisa and taking off his own apron. The two finished up the rest of the cleaning that needed to be done, finally being able to lock the front door and said their goodbyes until tomorrow morning. Halfway to his apartment Haruka felt his phone buzz in his pocket and he sighed, thinking that the sender was Nagisa and he forgot something in the shop again. But when he stopped to open the message, he raised an eyebrow in question at the unknown number. Haruka's curiosity got the best of him because no one else really knows his number except for a few family members and Nagisa, and opened the text in question.

_Hey, so...I'm really sorry if what I did earlier freaked you out? This is Rin, by the way._

Haruka stopped walking, eyes widening at the message, the message from Rin, and debated on answering at all.

But Haruka chose to answer, once he reached his apartment.

_It's fine. How did you get my number, anyways?_

Rin's answer was almost instant, like he was waiting for Haruka's response.

_Rei called Nagisa, asked, and he gave it to him, and then gave it to me and Makoto. That's okay, right?_

While Haruka went about his nightly routine before bed, he couldn't help but continue on his conversation with Rin. It felt almost better to talk to him this way rather than feel intimidated in person, almost easier to let the words flow because he wasn't actually speaking them, and the next thing that Haruka knew it was past midnight and he had been talking to Rin (and Makoto a few times, when RIn had mentioned that he asked something), and the entire time Haruka had been smiling. Aside from the initial conversation of how Rin even got the number, it had lead to a decent conversation. Haruka had mentioned how he learned to make those macaroons in Paris, to Rin telling about Makoto's incident in the kitchen that lead to having to remodel just one section and an almost lifetime ban for the brunette, and then things just about themselves and being equally interested in what the other had to say. Instead of feeling irritated at Rin's words and stories, Haruka looked forward to his phone buzzing which indicated that he had responded with something interesting to say. Rin had even brought up and asked about the woman from earlier, also admitting that he and Makoto peek across the street once in awhile (and Haruka confessing that he does that sometimes as well).

_She wanted to say thanks and compliment me on how much she and her co-workers like the doughnuts and croissants. That's never happened before so guess I did get a bit flustered._

_Well it definitely should happen more often! Makoto even agrees with me._

In the back of his mind, Haruka wanted to do something special for Nagisa for reassuring him that this was a good idea.

_Sorry, but I'm going to have to be going to bed. Have to get up early._

_Ah, right. Baker things and all. See you tomorrow? I feel bad that you ran out like that so I'll be bringing by the payment for the macaroons and something extra when you guys open._

Haruka smiled, reaching over to turn off his bedside lamp and settled into bed.

_Yeah._

_Goodnight, Haru. -Rin and Makoto_

_Night._

"Goodnight..." Haruka muttered to himself, turning his phone off and plugging it in to charge, heart swelling.

That night, instead of the calming green that was present in his dreams and the vibrant red that joined it which made Haruka feel uneasy and upset, it was...different. The red was as equally calming as the green, if not exciting, and throughout the dream he felt weightless and not have a care in the world.

And for once, Haruka went to bed smiling, and that was how he woke up.

* * *

_Author's note: I think that there's maybe two chapters left? Maybe? I said it was short, so that's why things might feel rushed? But hooray for feelings uwu_


End file.
